Fans slam grading “scam” as Pokemon TCG player gets rare Dragonite regraded
PokemonOne Collector has resubmitted a ‘7’ Dragonite to PSA and instead received a ‘9’ in a grading glow-up, and fans aren’t happy.
PSA, the Professional Sports Authenticator, is one of the three card graders, along with Beckett and CGC. Thanks to their reputation, PSA receives cards from collectors worldwide to verify their authenticity, but they don’t always get it right.
So, when a collector submitted a Persian with a questionable doodle drawn on the card to PSA earlier in 2023, the card grading business drew heat for allowing it through the grading process. They also generously graded the Persian a PSA 8 grade.
PSA’s apparent lack of accuracy and consistency has left this Pokemon card collector enchanted after he resubmitted the Dragonite he rescued from a cracked slab for regrading.
Dragonite Pokemon Card receives PSA up-grade for no apparent reason
The awarded and seemingly arbitrary grade brought this 1st edition base set Dragonite up from a 7 to a 9. Given that, as user Raknith put it, “PSA is inconsistent. PSA is also worth the most money”, many collectors were frustrated.
This is not the first time PSA has come under scrutiny. An intermediary grading company previously affiliated with PSA, Ludkins, went under last year and ran off with many collectors cards.
Another card grading company, Beckett is held in high esteem, but they too, are no strangers to controversy after one Pokemon TCG collector suffered 16,000 USD in losses when Beckett lost their Pokemon cards.
Some collectors don’t trust card grading altogether. Wonderful_Being_9368 said “Grading cards is the single largest scam. Human error will always be there and depending on the day the grader is having.”
An alternative for collectors looking to verify and increase the value of their cards could be to opt for lesser-known companies – but it’s clear many players aren’t huge fans of the system as a whole.
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